


Notes in a Melody

by liketolaugh



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime)
Genre: Ash raised by Pokemon, that's it that's the fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-21
Updated: 2017-12-21
Packaged: 2019-02-18 01:29:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13089570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liketolaugh/pseuds/liketolaugh
Summary: Rattata found Ash on the edge of the forest, in the arms of a dead woman.





	Notes in a Melody

A bundle of cloth sat on the edge of the forest. A few feet away, the ground was stained with now-dried blood, a black-haired woman still and dead on the grass, a little boy cradled in her stiff arms.

The boy, about a year old, cried desperately, tears streaming down his face. He was cold, and scared, and hungry, and  _Mommy wasn't moving._

"Tatta?"

The boy's cried slowed and quieted slightly as a Rattata poked its head out of the trees, red eyes round. Her eyes widened and she chirped in distress as her eyes fell upon the scene.

Rattata was confused. Just a moment ago, she'd been over the moon, having escaped from the prison Butterfree and Pidgeot – her parents, of a sort – insisted was a den. But now there was this, a crying child and a dead woman, and she suddenly wished Pidgeot was there to help her.

The human boy had stopped crying and was staring at her with tearstained, dark brown eyes, sniffling. Hesitantly, she crept forward, and he held his arms out hopefully, ignoring the restraints around him.

She didn't see very many humans where she lived, mostly just a noisy woman in a noisy car that drove around and spoke loud human words. "Ra rattat?" Rattata said hesitantly.  _Little boy?_

The human chirped at her wordlessly and held his arms out further.

She crept forward a little more, low to the ground and uncertain, ending just within his reach, eying the woman uncertainly. He patted her head clumsily and she cooed in pleasure. "Raaa!"

He giggled and Rattata chittered happily, worries gone, beaming and waving her tail. Her first trip alone out of the den and she'd already made a friend, even if it was a strange human child!

She nuzzled his arm happily and he giggled again, cooing. Then he snatched for her tail and she flicked it out of the way, biting him gently, but crossly. He flinched and whimpered and she cooed in apology, nuzzling him again and offering her tail.

He smiled at her and snatched for her tail, holding it surprisingly gently.

" _I like you,"_ Rattata told him, chittering soft laughter. He smiled, though she knew he didn't know what she'd said. Then, suddenly, she brightened. " _Hey, human boy, do you want to come home with me?"_

Pidgeot and Butterfree, she knew, would almost certainly take him in. After all, they'd taken her in when she'd been half-starved after two weeks on her own, when she was still just a baby Rattata – even if that was now so long ago that she barely remembered.

He looked at her and cocked his head, and cooed wordlessly. She sighed in pure exasperation and pulled her tail from his hand. He gave her a despondent look and whimpered.

" _Hey, human boy, come with me,"_ she insisted, backing away a little and waving her tail again.

He looked at her uncertainly and reached for her tail again, but it was just out of reach. She waited impatiently, hopping around a little in place, and he slowly sat up and then tumbled forward as he tried to reach her tail again, the woman's arms falling limp. His eyes welled up with tears, ignorant of the scene behind him.

" _Human boy!"_ Rattata complained. She waved her tail again.

Uncertainly, he crawled forward a few steps and reached again, and Rattata let his fingers brush her tail before she backed up a few more steps.

This time, the boy didn't hesitate; he crawled forward and reached again, and she backed up with surprising patience, luring him forward a few more steps. On the third round, he caught her tail and held it so tightly it hurt, and she cried out. He let go quickly with a teary-eyed whimper and she hissed a little before backing up and waving her tail again, determined.

In this manner, she lured him all the way to the den, curious pokémon occasionally pausing to watch their progress. They always quickly moved on, though, and eventually, they were at Rattata's den.

Rattata was tired, but pleased; the human boy had followed her all the way home, and now Pidgeot  _had_ to let her keep him. She crooned happily, darting in quick circles around the human boy, who laughed. Then his stomach grumbled and he frowned, looking at his stomach and then back up to her helplessly.

She tilted her head curiously. " _Are you hungry, human boy?"_

He looked at her uncomprehendingly and then looked at his stomach and whimpered, hugging it.

" _You're hungry,"_ Rattata decided. She brightened. " _I can fix that! Wait here, human boy!"_

He stared after her confusedly as she scrambled out of the cave. Within minutes of her departure, he looked around and suddenly realized that he couldn't see his mother anywhere. He whimpered, tears welling up in his eyes, and cried out, fidgeting fearfully.

Soon, though, Rattata returned, rolling several berries in front of her triumphantly. His cries quieted again and she sat in front of him, victorious.

" _Here, human boy!"_ she said cheerfully, pleased with herself. " _I found food!"_

He tilted his head at her and she sighed in exasperation and rolled a berry forward. " _C'mon, human boy, eat it."_

He frowned for a moment, but, hesitantly, reached forward and held it uncertainly in clumsy hands. He looked at her and whimpered in confusion.

" _Human boy!"_ Rattata complained. She reached forward and grabbed a berry for herself – she was getting rather hungry by now – and munched on it, then looked at him expectantly.

He stared at her, then looked at the berry and tried to bite it. It mashed in his mouth and he winced as it squished half over his face, but swallowed; the berry was rather soft.

The human boy smiled and cooed, and Rattata cooed in triumph. "Raaattata!" she cheered.

This was the scene Butterfree came to; having spent half the morning trying anxiously to locate the missing Rattata, she'd come home to check the den again to see if Rattata had found her way back. Apparently, she had.

And equally apparently, she'd found a friend.

" _Ra-rattata?"_ Butterfree stuttered, shocked.

Rattata looked up at her, beamed, and hopped up, skittering over to her. " _Mama, Mama, I found this human boy and his mom wasn't waking up and I brought him home, can we please, please keep him?"_ Her red eyes shone hopefully up at the Butterfree, and Butterfree blinked down at her.

"B-butterfree?" she choked. She looked at the human boy, who beamed at her, squished berry all over his face.

He crooned and slowly leaned forward to crawl toward her. She tipped her head and let him approach, red bug-eyes concerned, and he reached forward and brushed a hand carefully along her wing. He chirped happily.

" _Oh, sweetie,"_ Butterfree murmured, motherly instincts kicking in and finally processing Rattata's words. So his mother was dead. That meant that he likely had nowhere to go. She couldn't just leave him alone, the humans would never find him in time, and even if they did… well. She leaned forward and brushed one hand along the boy's head. He giggled. " _I'll speak to Pidgeot about it, okay, Rattata? Maybe you and I together can convince him."_

Her tone was wry and Rattata chirped in amusement, thinking of Pidgeot's often overcautious nature. He'd be none too pleased to have another family member to take care of, but Butterfree knew he had a soft heart – he'd taken care of her, after all.

The boy yawned and rubbed one eye sleepily, and Butterfree crooned. " _Okay, child, it's time to go to sleep,"_ she said softly. She shooed him to the corner with gentle wingbeats and then used String Shot on the corner, creating a soft surface for him. He yawned and curled up, blinking sleepily, and Butterfree added to Rattata, " _You, too, honey."_

Rattata gave her a cross look, but obediently curled up next to the boy, and he instantly wrapped her in a hug and fell asleep. She sighed, snuggled closer to him, and dropped off, too.

Butterfree crooned fondly and then flew off, small, rapid beats sending her out.

" _Pidgeot!"_ she called out. " _Pidgeot!"_

Within minutes, Pidgeot appeared, black eyes wide and frantic as he perched on a branch above her. " _Butterfree, did you find her? Oh, that girl is going to be in so much trouble when I get to her!"_

" _There's no time for that right now, Pidgeot,"_ Butterfree scolded, fluttering up to settle beside him. " _Rattata found a human boy."_

Pidgeot blinked. " _Whaaat? Butterfree-"_

" _I know, Pidgeot,"_ Butterfree said patiently. " _But he's just a baby, really. And you can't fool me; I know you like humans."_

It was true; Pidgeot had spent his younger years as a trainer's pokémon, and he'd picked up quite the fondness for humans over that time period.

" _Butterfree, it's not safe to keep a human child around,"_ Pidgeot said crossly, fluttering his wings in preparation for flight. " _We need to send him home."_

" _He has no home!"_ Butterfree snapped, beginning to lose patience with the male pokémon. " _Pidgeot, if we don't keep him, he'll most likely die."_

Pidgeot let out an agitated scree. " _Butterfree, I know you don't have much experience with humans, but when one of their young goes missing, they just… forget all limits, sometimes."_

" _If I can trust humans after they wrecked my home, you can trust them after your time with your trainer,"_ Butterfree insisted.

" _That was Team Rocket, that was different,"_ Pidgeot muttered rebelliously. " _We've all had bad experiences with Team Rocket and I know you know that they're different from other humans."_

" _Enough, Pidgeot. We're keeping him."_

Pidgeot ruffled his wings crossly. " _Oh, fine."_

If she could have, Butterfree would have smiled. " _Good."_

* * *

The day after they decided to keep him, Pikachu came calling.

"Pikapika!" he called cheerfully.  _Heya, family!_

Pikachu, usually called only 'Pika' due to their close friendship with his mother, Pikachu, and father, Raichu, had met them when a Fearow had attacked their den while Pidgeot was badly ill. Pika had taken down the Fearow with surprising ease and they'd been close ever since. Eventually, Rattata started to playfully refer to him as her cousin, and the title stuck.

Butterfree blamed Pidgeot for the whole extended family concept, honestly.

" _Shh!"_ Rattata hissed, almost vibrating in place. Too late; the boy woke up and sat upright with a yawn, peering around and then finding Pika and brightening. Pika tilted his head.

" _Who's that?"_

" _Human boy,"_ Rattata said confidently.

"… _I don't think that's a name."_

" _He's right, you know,"_ Butterfree said thoughtfully, crooning a laugh as Pidgeot opened one beady eye and glared at them for waking him. " _The child needs a name."_

" _Human boy works fine,"_ Pidgeot grouched, closing his eyes again.

" _Pidgeot!"_ Butterfree scolded. Pidgeot sighed and shook himself, rising to his feet resignedly. " _Good. Now, what should we call the boy?"_

All of them stared at the boy. He tilted his head and cooed curiously.

" _Ash?"_ Pika suggested, not sure where the name had come from, but liking it.

" _Yeah, Ash!"_ Rattata agreed enthusiastically. " _Hey, Ash, wanna play?"_

He tilted his head at her. She sighed and waved her tail at him. He grabbed at it and laughed. Pika snickered at Rattata and she gave him a cross look. " _Shut up, Pika."_

" _Didn't say a word,"_ sang Pika, smirking at her. " _Hey, can we show him to Ma and Pa? I know Ma'll be curious 'cause she's never seen a human before."_

" _Yeah!"_ Rattata agreed happily. " _Mama, can we?"_

" _Certainly,"_ Butterfree agreed, overruling Pidgeot's stern objection. Pidgeot sighed and wondered why he even bothered.

Rattata beamed and twisted around, whipping her tail away from Ash to show him her face instead. He tilted his head curiously and she chirped. " _C'mon, human boy, let's go see Pikachu and Raichu!"_ she enthused.

He crooned in confusion, but when she gestured with her tail, he hesitantly got up and crawled after her. Pika crooned triumphantly, half-laughing, and Rattata stuck her nose up and marched past him, Ash crawling curiously after her.

It wasn't far to Pikachu's den, and soon Pika hollered in, " _Hey, Ma, Pa, I've got someone ta show you!"_

Raichu poked his head out, frowning. " _Pika?"_ His eyes landed on Ash and widened. " _Oh."_

" _Yeah!"_ Rattata said happily, bouncing about. Ash giggled and snatched at her. She danced out of the way easily and continued, " _His name's Ash and I found him all by himself, and Mama said we could keep him!"_

" _Did she, now?"_ Raichu said dubiously. " _And did your Papa agree to this?"_

Rattata giggled. " _Mama didn't give him a choice, silly."_

Raichu sighed and muttered something about controlling women.

" _What was that, Rai dear?"_ Pikachu asked cheerfully, and Raichu flinched slightly – between the two of them, Pikachu was stronger, despite her pre-evolutionary form – while Pika and Rattata laughed at both of them. Ash just giggled, not quite sure what was going on. Pikachu emerged and her eyes landed on Ash and widened. " _Oh. Oh. Is that a human?"_

" _It is!"_ Rattata agreed happily.

Pikachu and Raichu looked at each other and thought the same thing.

_Oh, dear._

* * *

 

In the beginning, Ash cried a lot. It was easy to understand why; while he seemed to find the constant presence of pokémon soothing, he was still out in the cold and the sometimes-wet, and food was scarce sometimes – Butterfree had been known to go without to make sure he and Rattata both had enough, and Pidgeot, too, when times were desperate. More importantly, all the pokémon in the world couldn't replace his mother.

Eventually, though, he began to calm, and one day, he started to respond to Butterfree as he might have to a mother.

At around the same time, he showed signs of comprehending exactly what each of the pokémon around him were saying.

Rattata was delighted at this development.

"Human boy, human boy!" she chirped; even after over six months with Ash, she'd never dropped the nickname. "Follow me!"

He tilted his head and crooned, then tipped forward and crawled toward her, looking at her expectantly. She crooned triumphantly and darted forward, Ash crawling after her.

According to Pidgeot, when Ash finally learned to walk, it was much later than most humans did; by the bird pokémon's estimate, he was nearly two and a half years old when he finally, under Pikachu and Raichu's careful guidance, took his first steps.

Shortly afterward, he attempted to fly. It went about as well as one could expect, and Pidgeot gave him a long, hard scolding that made him duck his head shamefully.

* * *

**Like walking, Ash learned talking late, at about three years old. When he did, though…**

"Pikafree, pidgey raikachu ottata!" he chirped happily, clapping his hands enthusiastically. Mama, Pika and Rattata taught me where to find the best berries!

It was the strangest pokéspeech any of them had ever heard, but pokéspeech it was.

* * *

"Gotcha!" Four-year-old Ash cried gleefully, pinning Rattata to the ground.

"No way!" Rattata complained, huffing. Ash's brown eyes fixed inexplicably on her tail as it waved, and she wriggled free while he was distracted. He yelped and she attacked before he could get up, sending him flying into a tree.

Ash struggled to get up, huffing to himself and aching slightly from the play battle.

"Ha!" Rattata crowed triumphantly. "Take that, human boy! Tail Whip and Quick Attack!"

Ash flushed angrily. "No fair!"

"Okay, that's enough," Butterfree said firmly, stopping their fight before it began, as usual. "Rattata, that was very clever of you. Ash, you did very well at a strong disadvantage. I'm proud of both of you."

Ash shuffled his feet and grumbled, staring at the ground, but the anger had drained away, leaving just a soft, unhappy look.

Later, gathering berries with Pidgeot, he asked the experienced pokémon,

"Papa, why can Rattata learn moves, and why can't I?"

Pidgeot paused, an Oran berry in his beak, looking at Ash. Then he turned away, placed the berry on the ground, and answered, "It's because you are human, Ash."

"Huh?" Ash stared at Pidgeot in some confusion.

Ash knew, in his mind, that he was human, different from his friends and family. But he didn't really understand what that meant. As far as he could tell, it just meant that he was slower, clumsier, and weaker than them.

"Humans cannot learn attacks," Pidgeot explained, more uncomfortable than he liked to admit at Ash's crushed expression. "Instead, humans work like my old trainer. You remember my stories, don't you?"

Ash nodded reluctantly.

"Trixie taught me many of the moves I know today, and she was a better strategist than any pokémon," Pidgeot said with certainty. "That is what a human can do that a pokémon could never dream of doing."

"But I want to learn moves like you and Rattata," Ash said plaintively.

Pidgeot sighed regretfully.

"I'm sorry, Ash, but you just can't."

* * *

For a while, it seemed that Ash had taken Pidgeot's words to heart. He watched pokémon intently as they performed moves, he asked questions, and one day, he took Rattata into the forest, declaring that she would learn Bite.

At the end of the day, they both returned, tired but pleased. Ash had successfully taught Rattata Bite, and Crunch to boot.

Pika had quite the surprise the next time they fought, and Rattata walked away smug.

Ash watched the whole thing intently.

* * *

"Just give up, Ash!" Rattata laughed, waving her tail in his face playfully, looking over her shoulder to laugh at his frustrated expression.

Five-year-old Ash huffed, frustrated tears pricking at his eyes. "No way!" he protested, struggling to get up. But despite her smaller size, his battle-weakened state kept her heavy weight on his chest.

"Come on!" Rattata coaxed, wriggling her backside with a smug smirk. "No shame in it. I am an awesome Rattata after all."

Ash growled angrily and he placed a hand on Rattata's belly, fully intending to push her off. Then, suddenly, he felt heat and energy start to build in his palm, and a moment later, it exploded outward, and Rattata shrieked as she was propelled off of Ash and into a tree.

Ash sat up and swayed dizzily for a moment, suddenly tired, but then scrambled up and scurried over to where Rattata had landed.

"Rattata?" he asked, worried. "Rattata?" She was limp and unmoving on the ground, red eyes closed, and he felt unaccountably anxious, for all that he knew that she was a hardy, hardy pokémon.

After a few moments, of course, she stirred, and seconds later, she shot up and was scurrying in circles around Ash, bursting with excitement.

"Ash! You attacked me!" she squealed happily, red eyes sparkling. "What attack was that? How did you do that? That was awesome!"

Ash's worry faded and a smile broke out across his face. "I don't know!" he announced happily. "I just…" He reached out to put his palm against a tree and concentrated. After a moment, he felt energy build in his palm again, and let it explode out to cave the bark slightly.

Rattata beamed. "Whatever, let's show Mama! She'll be so pleased!"

Butterfree was pleased. She was startled, of course, but she showed her pleasure soon enough, nuzzling Ash fondly and murmuring words of praise as he giggled and beamed. Meanwhile, Rattata sat a few feet back, eyes sparkling and tail whipping as proudly as if it were her own achievement.

Of course, the third demonstration just about put Ash to sleep, so Butterfree let him curl up in a corner of the den and drop off, dead tired.

He didn't wake back up until Pidgeot returned, when he insisted on showing Pidgeot his attack.

Pidgeot, having much more experience with humans, was a good deal more shocked than Butterfree, but in the end, he was proud, too, and Ash couldn't have been more pleased.

* * *

When he was six summers old, Pidgeot couldn't help but ask Ash, "Ash, don't you wish that you could be with other humans?"

Ash tilted his head and gave him a beaming grin. "Papa, all the friends I'll ever need are pokémon."

* * *

Ash was about seven summers old when pokémon started to crash through the forest, shrieking and screaming, Mankeys swinging and Chansey crying and Rattata chattering in panic.

"Run! Run!"

Pidgeot straightened up from his play with Ash, black eyes sharp. Butterfree sat up, too, red bug-eyes worried.

"Run, you fools! RUN!"

"Mama?" Rattata asked anxiously, shifting from paw to paw.

"Be quiet, Rattata," Pidgeot ordered, suddenly serious. He leaned over and snatched Rattata up by the scruff of her neck. Voice muffled by fur, he said to Butterfree, "Butterfree, take her."

Butterfree nodded, eyes anxious, and fluttered over to take Rattata on her back, not even wincing at the rat's sharp claws as the little purple pokémon gripped too tight, red eyes wide and scared.

"Papa?" Ash asked anxiously, reaching for him uncertainly. Without a word, Pidgeot grabbed him by the neck of his Butterfree-silk clothes and sat him on his back, where he clung instinctively to his feathers.

"It'll be okay," Butterfree told both frightened children, her own insect eyes wide and darting, wings fluttering frantically. "You'll be okay, Papa and I will make sure."

Ash nodded, brown eyes wide, biting his lip. Trying to be brave for frightened Rattata, who was shaking as she clung to her mother's back.

"Pidgeot? Butterfree? Ash, Rattata?"

Pikachu's frantic voice pulled all of their attentions to the front of the cave. Her cheeks were sparking, the mother Pikachu on all fours and braced for flight or battle. She sighed, relaxing slightly as she caught sight of them.

"Oh, thank Arceus you're alright. Come on, we need to leave, now. Raichu's holding them off, but he'll have to give in and come find us soon." Her cheeks sparked anxiously. "He should have let me, he knows I could buy more time…"

"Not now," Pidgeot ordered, seeing Pika, quiet for once and tail trembling, peek out from behind his mother, then look anxiously over his shoulder. "Pikachu, what is it? What's happening?"

Pikachu cast a furtive glance back, not answering, and finally Pika answered in a shaky voice.

"Team Rocket."

Pidgeot cursed and batted Pika and Pikachu out, in a hurry now. By this time, Ash was very confused, but too scared to say a word.

"Lead the way to Raichu, as fast as you can," he ordered, voice serious and lined with experience. "We need to get both our families out of here as soon as we can."

Pikachu nodded quickly and, still on all fours, streaked away with all the speed of her species, Pika just two steps behind. Pidgeot took to the air with a single flap of his wings and flew after her. Butterfree cooed a hasty reassurance to Rattata and followed, desperately trying to keep pace with the three faster pokémon.

"Rai… rai chu!"

Raichu, panting heavily, squeezed off another Thunderbolt just as they reached him, taking down only a few of the many Golbats swarming him. A few yards away, two tall humans in black uniforms with red symbols watched dispassionately. One of them held a red-and-white ball in his hand, ready to throw.

"Raichu!"

Worried, Pikachu darted in front of Raichu and braced against the ground, then cried out, "Pika… chuuu!"

The strong Thunder knocked out at least half the Golbat and the humans started yelling, making Ash flinch. Pidgeot swooped on the rest with a war cry, ignoring their trainers' furious yells and swatting away the pokéball with great prejudice, giving Pikachu and Raichu time to escape.

As soon as he was satisfied that they and Butterfree were far enough away, Pidgeot gave another cry and, carefully minding quietly-crying Ash on his back, swept away.

"Big boys don't cry, Ash," Pidgeot said firmly, unable to think of anything else. "Be strong for me, understand, Ash? Be strong for me."

Ash sniffled a little, but the quiet sobbing stopped and Pidgeot felt him nod against his feathers.

They quickly caught up with Butterfree, who was waiting for them with the Pikachu family.

"Run!" Pidgeot barked.

They didn't need to be told twice; Butterfree took off instantly, flying faster than she ever had before, and Pika, Pikachu, and Raichu darted a few feet beneath them as they stayed low, dodging trees and large branches in jerking movements.

Rattata was crying, nose buried against Butterfree as she pressed herself against her, and Pidgeot could feel Ash shaking with the effort not to do the same.

"Cro!"

A Crobat crashed into Pidgeot from behind and he grunted, flapping his wings hard in an effort to stay aloft.

Butterfree was now constantly chanting, darting back and forth like the bug she was, trying to look everywhere at once. "It's going to be okay, you're going to be okay, it's going to be okay…"

"Cro, cro, crobat!"

The Crobat swooped for the Pikachu family with an angry, wordless cry, and they were forced to change direction on the spot, breaking away from Pidgeot and Butterfree. Pidgeot dearly wanted to follow them, but the Crobat banked up hard, neatly missing every tree in his way, and crashed into Butterfree.

Butterfree screamed, reassurances breaking off as she was knocked almost out of the air, and Pidgeot let out a harsh cry and swooped down to Wing Attack the Crobat, but missed. The Crobat hissed at him and used Wing Attack right back, too fast for Pidgeot to move, and he gasped out a cry as his wing was badly damaged.

Butterfree was almost falling out of the air, breathless, pained words falling short of anyone's ears, and Pidgeot darted under her to try and support her with his good wing.

"Pidgeot," Butterfree gasped out.

"I won't leave you here," Pidgeot snapped, straining – he hadn't been pushed this hard since his trainer's death.

Butterfree looked ready to cry from pain and stress and fear. "Pidgeot, please, Ash- They'll kill him, you know they'll kill him-"

It was true.

Pidgeot felt Ash's hands tighten in his feathers, and he looked at Butterfree for a long moment.

"Don't let Ash die," Rattata managed to whisper, red eyes wide, pressed against Butterfree but looking at Pidgeot. "Ash can't die!"

Pidgeot looked for a few seconds longer, and then he looked to the front, and he dove. Butterfree gasped as she was made to support her own weight again, but flapped frantically after Pidgeot as he zoomed ahead, listing heavily now.

Pidgeot didn't look back until he heard both Butterfree and Rattata cry out, when he looked to find that Crobat had returned and tackled Butterfree out of the air, and then realized one of the humans was catching up, eyes intent on the one-sided battle.

"Don't stop!" Butterfree screamed at Pidgeot. "Pidgeot, they'll kill him! They'll kill him!"

"Papa!" Rattata half-sobbed, clinging to Butterfree, baring her teeth at the Crobat in an unconvincing display of aggression. She shrieked as he attacked her and lashed out with a Scratch, barely hitting him.

Pidgeot's beak clicked angrily and he didn't reply, just flying faster, angling upward to try and climb as high as was safe for Ash.

Butterfree was screaming.

Ash turned around, eyes Pidgeot knew would be wide with fear and horror locked on the scene behind them. And then he screamed, the sound mixing with Butterfree's own.

"Don't look, Ash," Pidgeot warned, far too late.

Butterfree stopped screaming.

Moments later, Pidgeot heard, "Get back here, you bastard!"

Pidgeot gasped in pain as several poison darts sank into his flesh, and heard Ash cry out in pain; he must have been hit.

Almost instantly, Pidgeot felt woozy as the poison started to flow through his system, but he knew he had some time left. He had to. He had to get Ash out.

In the beginning, Pidgeot hadn't really liked Ash. The human was large and clumsy and didn't belong in their forest at all, and it was only at Butterfree and Rattata's insistence that he let the boy stay, that he kept him fed.

But, as always seemed to happen in these sorts of scenarios, Ash grew on him, and long before this day arrived, Ash was family.

He had to get Ash out.

After a long moment, Pidgeot realized that no more attacks were forthcoming, the Crobat fallen far behind, kept back by the need to stay near his trainer. He crowed weakly in triumph.

"Hold on, Ash," he croaked, weary and trying not to let on how worried he was – he didn't need to see it to know that Butterfree and Rattata must have gotten captured. Or maybe worse.

He felt Ash nod and sped up, flying as far and as hard as he could, over the water, where the Rockets hopefully couldn't follow.

In less than two hours' time, Pidgeot knew that he wasn't going to survive. The poison pulsing through his system was weakening him rapidly, and already, beating his wings took almost more effort than he had.

Ash was whimpering quietly on his back, but long exposure to pokémon – Pika in particular, with his fondness for friendly shocks – had raised his pain tolerance to a nearly inhuman level, and so Pidgeot felt confident that he could bear the poison well. He was just glad he had taken the brunt of it – a human couldn't take much more than Ash had.

Pidgeot could feel the strength draining out of him with every wingbeat, and he prayed that he could make it to land before he passed out, before he doomed Ash to death by drowning.

Pidgeot had just started to chant soft, despairing apologies for his failure when he spotted land and nearly collapsed then and there from relief. He angled downward slightly, making the last leg of his journey a little easier, and kept going.

Black was threatening the last tunnel of vision he had when he finally crash-landed on the ground, just inside the forest, and felt Ash tumble off of him with a whimpered cry, too exhausted by now to be much louder. He lay there, breathing shallow and rapid, and felt rather than saw Ash crawl over to him.

"Raicheot?" Ash asked uncertainly, worried and close to tears. "Pidge pidgeotta." Papa? Please wake up. His eyes welled up with tears. "Raicheot! Pitterfree!" Papa! Don't die!

With effort, Pidgeot turned his head to turn rapidly dimming eyes on Ash. "Big boys don't cry," he whispered, once again unable to think of anything better. Then, quieter, barely audible, "I'm glad you're okay."

Ash cried out. "Papa!"

Pidgeot's eyes closed.

"Papa!" Ash hurt. "Papa!" He was tired. "Papa." He felt lightheaded. "Papa…"

Ash passed out.

Professor Oak was in the forest near his ranch when he heard a crash and straightened up, frowning. He held still for a few minutes, listening; it didn't pay to barge right in when it came to wild pokémon.

"Raicheot? Pidge pidgeotta. ...Raicheot? Pitterfree!" A long pause. "Raicheot! Raicheot!"

…That didn't sound like any pokemon Oak had ever heard before. In fact, the sobbing that accompanied the hysterical pokéspeech sounded very, very human…

Concerned now, Oak pushed his way through the trees and looked around for the source of the noise, speeding up when it finally slowed to a stop.

He found its source in the form of a small boy, about six years old at Oak's estimate, passed out half on top of a clearly dead Pidgeot. What in the world…?

He stepped forward slowly, frowning. He didn't recognize the child, strange in such an isolated place as Pallet. The Pidgeot, of course, could explain that, if it had flown the boy.

Suddenly, he noticed the telltale needles of a Poison Sting attack, scattered across the Pidgeot's body and the little boy's own. His eyes widened and he hurried forward, bending down to scoop him up. He'd need to treat him before he started to investigate.

"Hold on, child," he murmured, turning around to hurry back to the lab.

* * *

"Pi-pidgey…"

Professor Oak started, looking up from his work to where he'd placed the child on his bed to rest. He smiled upon seeing the boy sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning," Professor Oak said pleasantly, getting up and slowly walking over to kneel down beside the boy. "How are you feeling?"

The boy froze, and then, slowly, looked up, eyes wide and frightened. "Rattata!" he yelped, scrambling back.

Oak stopped, eyes softening slightly. Poor thing, he was terrified. "It's okay," he said gently. "You're safe now, don't worry."

He inched back anyway, hesitant and scared. "...Butterfree?" he asked hesitantly. "Butter pikafree rai?"

Oak frowned, confused. That sounded like what he had heard in the forest, which at least confirmed his suspicion, but actually wasn't helpful in the least. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't understand."

The boy stopped, eyes filling with frightened tears. "Rattata! Raaaa!" he insisted, shrinking away, close to falling off the bed now.

Professor Oak reached forward, intending to pull the boy back before he fell off.

Instead, he yelped and flinched back, which was just enough to send him off the bed. Undeterred, he turned and scrambled away, and Oak just had time to spot a tearstained face before he was out the door.

Oak cursed his slow reactions and scrambled up, cursed his old bones, and went after the boy.

* * *

Half an hour. It took half an hour, and the help of several pokémon, to track the child - Ash, Oak decided, if it turned out he didn't have a human name, he would call him Ash - down to where he sat now, settled in with a nest of Nidoran.

Nidorina, the mother of the group, was grooming Ash gently, and they appeared to be talking. Oak would have put a stop to it - Nidorina was not the sort of pokémon a child should be around, with their Poison Point - except both Nidorina and Ash looked quite calm.

The Nidoran were clustered around the child, chattering excitedly, and only stopped when Professor Oak called out.

"Ah, there you are."

Ash started and flinched, turning wide, frightened eyes on Oak. Nidorina, on the other hand, sat back on its heels and beamed at Professor Oak.

"Nido nidorina!" she greeted happily.

Ash paused.

"Pidgeot pidgey?" he asked her uncertainly.

"Astonishing," Oak murmured, watching as Nidorina appeared to reassure Ash. "It seems that he can understand both pokémon and humans…" He frowned. "Though it also seems that he can only speak like a pokémon… that could be problematic."

There had been a running theory for a few years now, relating to what would happen if a child was raised by pokémon. There had never been any proof, of course - pokémon who found a human child had always, in the past, brought them to a human settlement.

But those who subscribed to it believed that the child would be able to understand pokémon.

While Oak himself had never believed it, it seemed that it was true.

Finally, Ash nodded, decisively, stood up, picked his way through the Nidoran, and beamed at Professor Oak.

"Pika raichu rai!" he said cheerfully.

Oak took the opportunity as it was given and smiled down at Ash, kneeling down until he was almost at eye level.

"It's good to meet you," he told the boy. "How about I call you Ash?"

* * *

Ash had been living with Oak for a week before the renowned pokémon professor had a stroke of genius.

So far, all of Oak's attempts to get Ash to pronounce a sound not in his current repertoire (which Oak believed consisted of Butterfree, Pidgeot, Rattata, Pikachu, and Raichu) had ended in utter failure. However…

Oak took Ash out to the pokémon ranch that day, as he had done every day – it seemed to be of comfort to the pokéraised child.

It was an Oddish that bounded to Ash's aid this time, and Oak suppressed a smile; pokémon tended to treat Ash like one of their own, even before they knew of his ability.

Before the pair could fall into the normal rhythm of indecipherable pokéspeech, Oak broke in. "Ash? Could you do me a favor?"

Ash looked up at him and tilted his head curiously. "Pidgey chu?"

"Could you try to sound like Oddish for me?"

Ash considered this carefully, brow furrowed, and then he grinned and nodded. "Pika! Atta ra!"

Oak smiled. "Thank you, Ash. Oddish, could you help him, please?"

Oddish bounced happily. "Oddish!" it affirmed.

And sure enough, when he returned two hours later, Ash grinned at him.

"Oddish, oddish!" he chirped proudly.

Oak grinned. He was brilliant.

* * *

After that, it took only a few months before Ash could sound like any pokémon he wanted to. Of course, Oak couldn't possibly hide Ash that long, and by the time two weeks passed, every man, woman, and child in Pallet Town knew about the strange boy staying with Professor Oak, who understood humans but spoke like a pokémon.

Outside of the adults' line of sight, some of the more spiteful children were particularly cruel about it.

"Pika pika, rai rattata!" Gary mocked, waving his arms like a loon. "What's that supposed to mean, huh? Huh, pokémon boy?"

Ash's face flushed angrily as the other children laughed. "Freetatta, pikarai!" he snapped furiously, stomping his feet. Shut up, Gary!

They laughed again, with a cruelty Ash had never experienced with pokémon. Ash gritted his teeth and growled, low in his chest.

"What's going on here?"

The sound of Professor Oak's voice caused the cruel smirk to vanish from Gary's face.

"Grandpa!" he greeted cheerfully instead. "Hi!"

Oak wasn't fooled and he sighed. "Gary…"

Gary held his gaze, arms crossed defiantly. Oak sighed again.

"I'll speak with you later, Gary," Oak said sternly. "Come along, Ash."

Ash growled at Gary again, then shuffled along after Oak, glaring at the ground.

Oak waited until Gary and his friends were out of earshot before he started to speak.

"I apologize for Gary, Ash. Children can be cruel." And it must be quite the shock for Ash, Oak added silently. Pokémon were inherently good-natured, and Ash seemed to be just the same.

"Pidgeyka," Ash muttered.

Oak sighed, yet again. Then he looked down at Ash and smiled wearily. "I want you to know, Ash, that being able to speak to pokémon is a gift, one I wouldn't have believed possible before I met you. I don't want you to ever regret your upbringing, understand, Ash?"

Ash just lowered his head, hiding his eyes from Oak's line of sight. "Pikafree," he whispered. "Raicheot."

Oak's brow crinkled in concern, and he looked away.

* * *

One week and three months after Ash's arrival, Oak spoke to Delia.

"What is it, Professor?" Delia asked, curious and concerned.

"Delia," Oak began, unusually intense, "What do you think of Ash?"

"Ash?" Delia asked, startled. "Well, I think he's a darling boy. He's as good-hearted as any pokémon, which is wonderful to see. If I could have children, I think I'd want my son to be just like him." A small smile played about her lips. "Well, maybe a little more patient."

Oak smiled. "That's wonderful to hear."

Delia turned her head to give him a curious look. "Why do you ask?"

Oak chuckled ruefully. "I'm old, Delia. I can't take care of a child anymore, especially not one as energetic as Ash. Besides that, while he puts on a brave face during the day, it's clear the loss of his surrogate parents affected him deeply. I believe something else happened as well." He turned his head to look at Delia, face serious. "Ash still needs to learn to speak like a human, and how to read and write. Do you believe you could take him? He likes you, you know."

Delia looked taken aback, but still, without hesitation, she replied, "Yes, of course."

The next day, Ash moved in with Delia.

* * *

Delia tried for months to teach Ash to speak like a human, she really did, but they couldn't manage to make even a little bit of progress between them.

Ash tried, but he just couldn't connect the sounds to the meanings; pokéspeech didn't work that way. All he ever managed to learn to say were names.

Delia just sighed, smiled, and ruffled his hair, assuring him that it wasn't his fault. They'd just caught him too late.

So Ash did what he always did; he watched the pokémon. He watched them and how they interacted with humans, just as effectively mute as he, and moved to imitate them.

It worked fine for him, of course. It always did.

* * *

In hindsight, Delia wasn't sure why she was surprised when Ash indicated that he wanted to become a pokémon trainer.

All any pokémon wanted was to be strong.

Ash was no different.

**Author's Note:**

> An old fic! But I have some ideas for a potential continuation of it (different from what I initially planned) so I'm adding it here. No promises, of course, but just in case-
> 
> I do, after all, like aura adept!Ash, and I have some setup for it in this...


End file.
